Prepare Your Heart for Worship

I still vividly remember something I saw a small church on a mission trip several years ago. As we were getting ready and setting up, the words “Prepare Your Heart for Worship” had been put up on the screen.

It really made me think about how little we do to prepare our hearts for worship on an average Sunday. Between all the stuff we have to do to get ready and get to church, then getting to church and saying “hi” to everyone and getting to Sunday School (all good things to be sure), sometimes our Sunday mornings might feel a little hectic leading in to worship.

On that note, I want to pose a question: how will you prepare your heart for worship this coming Sunday? Will you just go through your week, have a typical Saturday, then roll out of bed Sunday morning and head to church, ‘business as usual?’ Or – will you commit yourself right now to being truly prepared for the corporate worship service this Sunday?

How can you prepare? Here’s what I would suggest:
Start with God’s Word. Saturate yourself in Scripture for the rest of the week. If you can, find out what passage your pastor will be preaching (at Fellowship, we’ll be in Colossians 1:15-20) and read not only that passage, but the surrounding passages as well. Read through as much of it as you can several times between now and Sunday.

Pray. A lot. Pray for your pastor as he prepares to teach God’s Word. It’s a great privilege and responsibility to proclaim God’s Word each Sunday. While I’m really enjoying it, it’s also a little daunting when I think of the great responsibility it is to not only feed the flock, but also to rightly handle the Word of Truth (2 Tim. 2:15). It’s a responsibility I don’t take lightly. Pray also for yourself and your family. Pray that God would prepare your hearts to hear His Word taught. Pray that you would have a larger vision of Christ and His supremacy as a result of gathering with your brothers and sisters in Christ to adore Christ and hear the Gospel proclaimed.

Worship. Don’t wait for Sunday morning to be in worship. Find a Christ-exalting worship album and listen to it between now and then. (see my suggestion below)

Be mentally and physically prepared. Don’t stay up late on Saturday night. As you think toward all that you’ll have to get done on Saturday, plan your day so that you can get to bed early enough to be well rested. The corporate gathering of the body on Sunday morning is a big deal. We should look forward to it and be as prepared for it as possible.

Bring your Bible & Take Notes. This would seem obvious, but having your own Bible with you is so helpful. You need to see the passage that’s being taught in your own Bible and take notes so that when you look at the passage again, you’ll remember what you’ve learned. You want to be changed by the power of God’s Word and looking again at the passage and your notes will help you as you seek after the righteousness of Christ and aim to walk worthy of the gospel.

As I think toward this Sunday, here are a few things that I would encourage you to do to prepare your own heart for worship this coming Sunday. These have been helpful to me and I’m praying that they are helpful to you as well.

1. Pray through Colossians 1:9-14 for yourself and the members of our congregation.

2. Look at these passages: John 6:68-69 and John 12:21. In the John 12 passage, the section is titled “Some Greeks Seek Jesus.” Our thoughts when preparing for worship should always be “I want to see Jesus!” We also must have the mindset of Peter in John 6 knowing that there is literally nowhere else to turn than to Christ. We must intentionally focus on the sufficiency of Christ and the Word for all that we need for life and godliness (2 Peter 1:3).

3. Download and listen to “Show us Christ” from the Album “The Gathering: Live from WorshipGod11” by Sovereign Grace Music. It’s on iTunes and totally worth the .99 cents you’ll have to pay for it. (The entire album is definitely worth getting as well and would be an excellent personal worship resource)

May you grow in grace and knowledge of Him as you seek Christ and His righteousness this week!

Soli Deo Gloria!
Rob
<><